By: Karen Simmons
S – Safe diamonds for investment, origin of diamond, where it came from, honorable sources, not obtained by negative methods such as the case in the past of blood diamonds, hurting the environment etc. Other areas to keep in mind are fluorescent and treated diamonds which negatively affect the value of diamonds.
P – Portability, diamonds are the most concentrated substance and also the most concentrated form of wealth that can easily be transported in this day and age of mobility, natural disaster etc. Just grab the goods and run!
By: Karen Simmons
In the beginning… Before financial advisors, S&P 500, DJIA, stocks, bonds, or paper money existed, “hard” assets ruled the world. Wealth status was physical in nature. Royalty and the well‐to‐do possessed a most magnificent mineral – diamonds. Today, we’ve seen the proliferation of equities, commodities and real estate.
By: Karen Simmons
Funny man Dan Aykroyd stared in Diamonds, a comedic film about a former boxer that wishes to retrieve a cache of diamonds hidden in Las Vegas. Aykroyd’s co-star, Lauren Bacall, was leading lady for Humphrey Bogart in To Have and Have Not. The late Bacall told the Canadian Press while at a Toronto International Film Festival that “Toronto is a wonderful city…I’ve always loved it here.”
Diamonds cast member Jenny McCarthy has a fabulous 10 carat ring with a diamond encrusted band from husband and Blue Bloods star Donnie Wahlberg. McCarthy was formerly married to Ontario born Jim Carrey. In Pet Detective, Carrey’s character was on a hilarious mission to flush out a suspect who left one loose diamond at a crime scene. Said diamond was from a Miami Dolphins NFL Super Bowl ring.
By: Karen Simmons
It’s no surprise, coloured diamonds produce record-breaking sales at Christie’s and Sotheby’s auctions around the world year after year. However, even Warren Buffett’s venture into retail diamonds wasn’t triggered by coloured diamonds when he first entered the industry in the ‘90s, but his sense for stability and profitability clearly proved to be right on target.
By: Karen Simmons
It’s no surprise, coloured diamonds produce record-breaking sales at Christie’s and Sotheby’s auctions around the world year after year. However, even Warren Buffett’s venture into retail diamonds wasn’t triggered by coloured diamonds when he first entered the industry in the ‘90s, but his sense for stability and profitability clearly proved to be right on target.
By: Karen Simmons
JUST A FEW YEARS AGO, $4.8 billion was the total value of the fashion accessories and jewellery market in Canada, according to the Trade Facilitation Office Canada (TFO Canada). Although the profit margins of fine jewellers were squeezed by volatile gold and silver markets, the polished diamond market remained
fairly steady, and the overall market advanced four per cent annually.
By: Karen Simmons
BEING GIA CERTIFIED SINCE 1976, I feel that the Diamond Producers Association’s message to Millennials, “Rare is real, real is a diamond” is right on target: diamonds represent all that is pure, strong, and rich in character.
On a personal level, diamonds convey something special: an authentic connection and commitment. This is why, for so many years, their natural beauty, resilience, and rarity have been used to symbolize everlasting love. However, these qualities also ring true on a financial level. Their interminable splendor, incredible beauty, and enduring strength cannot be duplicated, adding to their indisputable value.
By: Karen Simmons
ON JUNE 16, 2014, the Diamond Bourse of Canada (DBC) became inducted into the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) at the 36th World Diamond Congress in Antwerp. The diamond-polishing grandfather of the DBC president, Mr. David Gavin (a third-generation diamantaire), served his apprenticeship in Antwerp. Talk about coming full circle!
By: Karen Simmons
WHEN MARY OF BURGUNDY was presented with what became the first engagement diamond ring from Archduke Maximillian in Alberta in 1477, she could not have known that Alberta would be born centuries later in 1905. Nor could she have known that Arctic diamonds would be mined in Northwest Territories come 1998.
Fast forward to 2016, Grizzly Discoveries (a diversified Canadian mineral exploration company) is pursuing diamondiferous “pipes” in north-central Alberta. Known as the Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite field, Grizzly began exploring the area in early 2000 with kimberlite being found between 2008 and 2009.